AT&T vs. the consumer: the throttling controversy grows

Last month, AT&T fought and lost a lawsuit over whether its highly controversial throttling policy violated the terms of “unlimited” smartphone contracts. Matt Spaccarelli was awarded $850 for his efforts, but neither side is letting the issue drop. AT&T writes that Spaccarelli is tethering his iPhone to other devices in violation of his contract.

“As the result of your tethering, AT&T has the right to terminate your service,” the letter reads. “Nevertheless, and as we discussed, AT&T is interested in hearing any concerns you would like to raise about AT&T, and AT&T wants to discuss with you the concerns it has about your data usage.” There definitely seems to be an implied threat, though AT&T doesn’t connect the dots completely.